Infinite Mass

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Infinite Mass was the only Swedish hip-hop group that managed to break commercially with West Coast rap and G-funk. Their time in the spotlights in the mid-'90s was brief, but the work they and Latin Kings did in paving way for the wave of Swedish hip-hop in the late '90s should not be underestimated. Infinite Mass was formed in 1991 by Rodrigo Pencheff, Amir Chamdim, and Bechir Eklund, and soon swelled out to become a big collective of rappers, dancers, and musicians. Pencheff was also a member of Latin Kings and in 1992 the two groups participated in a rap contest where Latin Kings were discovered and offered their first record deal. Infinite Mass won the competition but the international contest that was to follow was canceled. The band was offered to record an EP as compensation and the result was Infinite Mass, released later the same year and sold by the band members themselves. At this time, Infinite Mass played political and angry music with clear influences from Public Enemy and NWA, as can be heard on the singles and EPs released the following two years, including "Shoot the Racist," which reached some fame through the action movie Sökarna in 1993.

With the release of their debut album The Infinite Patio in 1995, Infinite Mass had shifted over to G-funk and West Coast rap. The album meant a major breakthrough for the group, though the gangsta image brought them some scorn, and had them answering for the violent lyrics of the whole genre on national television. The album got a Swedish Grammy award for best dance album and the tour that followed was the first ever where Swedish hip-hop drew big crowds. Leila K. had been close a few years earlier, but had quit her tour after only a few concerts. Back from the road, Eklund left the band to start a solo career under the stage name Bashir, while the remaining duo travelled to Los Angeles to find inspiration at the source. There they were introduced to Melle Mel and MC Eith, and managed to get both to participate on Alwayz Somethang, released in 1997. But in spite of the star factor these two gave the album, and a gangsta image now even more dependent on classic gangster movies, the album was a commercial failure. The following years saw the members of Infinite Mass working with various other artists as well as setting up their own label, Topaz. In 2000, the single "Enter the Dragon" got much airplay, and being built around a heavy guitar riff, it showed that Infinite Mass had left G-funk behind. The album The Face, released in 2001, kept on the same track and was equally discarded as rap-metal and admired for it's mix of styles and genres. ~ Lars Lovén